Reneé Rapp on Joining Mean Girls, Being 'Publicly Obsessed' with Jenn Colella & More

At this time last year, Reneé Rapp was preparing to head to New York City for the 10th Annual Jimmy Awards, where she would be named a winner alongside future Dear Evan Hansen star Andrew Barth Feldman. Now, she's starring in Mean Girls as Regina George for a summer stint before officially taking over the role from Tony nominee Taylor Louderman in September. "It happened very fast," Rapp said to Ryan Lee Gilbert in a recent interview on Broadway.com's #LiveAtFive about her transition from Jimmy Award winner to Broadway-debut star. "I didn’t necessarily have expectations going in [to the Jimmy Awards], but it ended up being something that changed the trajectory of my life. And Andrew [Barth Feldman's] as well. We were just speaking the other day about how it was a year ago that we had just met and now we’re great friends doing what we love every night."

Rapp made her Broadway debut on June 7 for her first shift through June 26, and it's a night she'll never forget. "It was pretty crazy," she said. "I had so much emotional buildup that I'm not sure I fully understood what was going on. I was like, 'Girl, hold it together. Please don’t pass out on stage, you can't just get here and pass out on stage.' It was incredible. The cast is the dream team and I felt so supported. I did cry a lot."

While Rapp had no idea that her path to the Great White Way would be the Jimmy Awards, there is one thing that ties them together. And that thing is Tony nominee Jenn Colella. "I'm in love and publicly obsessed with Jenn Colella," Rapp said about choosing Colella's "All Falls Down" from Chaplin as her Jimmy Awards performance. "The reason I do everything is Jenn. I took a master class with her when I was super young. I will never forget when she walked into the room. She is amazing. She's just so strong in herself and that really came across to me in 'All Falls Down' and that's the aura I want."

As for how Colella played a role in Rapp's transition to Mean Girls? It was all in the audition. "I sang 'Number 5 with a Bullet' from High Fidelity, another Jenn Colella song," Rapp said. "I love all of her rep. I started doing that and then we got into singing cuts from the Regina track. I went through various rounds of auditioning, and one of the last rounds is when I had Casey [Nicholaw] and Tina [Fey] and Jeff [Richmond] and Casey Hushion in the room and I was like, 'Wow, I really gotta show out today.' They are some of the most loving and supportive people in the universe."

While Rapp may be rocking Regina's pink heels, she loves when she's not wearing the signature color. "It's my favorite moment on stage every night," Rapp said of singing "Watch the World Burn." "The song is more rock and pop and that’s who I am. I don’t think anyone is going to toss me into a classical show. It's also my favorite Regina outfit. I get to wear black leggings, which is my entire wardrobe. It’s the most like me; I love an all-black style."

Be sure to catch Rapp in Mean Girls through June 26 and again starting on September 10.

Watch the full #LiveAtFive interview below!